In the final months of summer, the Associated Students of Portland State University are recruiting students to fill the remaining voting seats on 23 all-university committees by the beginning of fall term. The students chosen will represent the rest of the student body at PSU and actively participate in university policy-making.
“The promotion of self-governance as a concept is at the very heart of the student government here at PSU,” said Rayleen McMillan, a PSU student and the director of university affairs for ASPSU. “Students should have a seat at the table when important policies [at the university level] are being considered and mandated.”
This time around, ASPSU is hoping to get the seats filled by fall, with a couple of seats being held for incoming student who wish to apply. Currently, there is a rolling recruitment schedule for both student and faculty members. In the coming year, ASPSU hopes to have all student seats filled by spring rather than summer, casting a wider net and reaching more of the student body.
“I hope to be the university affairs director who breaks that cycle. Next year I aim to have those seats full and ready to go come spring,” McMillan said. “We understand the process isn’t super ideal right now, so while we’re looking for ways to make the recruitment numbers better we also want to make the entirety of the student body more aware of this opportunity.”
When asked why participation in the committees is so important, McMillan explained that “the promotion of shared governance is at the heart of the student government here at PSU. Students are the biggest stakeholders in the success of the university.”
McMillan emphasized the importance of student input on topics like tuition increases. “We need to have seats at the table when important policies…are being decided and implemented,” she said.
“The important thing about AUC is that the administration is not paying us lip service; they are not saying, ‘C’mon in the room and you can listen while we decide things.’ AUC gives students a position to vocalize and vote from.”
The administration does not challenge ASPSU’s nominations, though they do check a student’s academic eligibility via the Office of the Dean of Student Life before granting the nomination.
Shared governance at Portland State continues to move forward, and the passage of Senate Bill 270 will effectively establish an institutional board at PSU. Come July 2014, PSU will be governed by a board rather than by the Oregon University System. The bill has passed in the Oregon Senate and House, and currently awaits Gov. Kitzhaber’s signature.
“This has been a huge priority of ASPSU, to promote self governance anywhere we can,” McMillan said.
Thomas Worth, McMillan’s predecessor, succeeded in getting the “all-university committee” designation lifted off of three important grant-awarding committees: the Smith Memorial Student Union advisory board, the auxiliary activities committee and the speakers board. All three are funded by student incidental fees. The importance of these changes lies in the fact that these committees are no longer subject to the regulations and by-laws of the faculty senate.
“This was a very important goal for ASPSU last year,” McMillan said.
President Wim Wiewel gave the lift a three-year trial period. As long as university administration feels that faculty and staff have been properly represented on these committees, they will then grant a permanent lift to AUC distinction. “This is a good thing,” McMillan pointed out. “Students need to be protective of their incidental fees.
“Nationwide, there has been an attack on student fees, where students struggle to allot their own fees, or universities…use this money to shore up their own budget gaps. This gives students a chance to unionize, in a sense.
“We feel strongly about ASPSU’s boots on the ground attitude,” McMillan added. “It’s very important to focus on getting reliable student voices in these seats so that students can have a role in making policy on anything from university budgets to curriculum.”
Candidates for AUC seats must be enrolled in classes at PSU, make a year’s commitment to AUC and maintain academic eligibility with a 2.5 GPA. For more information visit aspsu.pdx.edu/aucs.